15. Worthy opponent
Marianne glared at the door with such intensity that, was she a young apprentice, would've probably set in on fight. She didn't need her Italian cards nor any chicken bones to know what her husband was speaking about with her granddaughter. Fu needed to be more careful about his wild ideas.
The door was opened and grandfather and granddaughter came in. Marinette was clearly angry, she didn't say anything and headed straight to her room.
"What did you do?"
Fu asked the maid for tea.
"I asked her to respond to her duty."
"And what is it that you call duty, may I know?"
The man sat at the tea table and smiled like a saint.
"Marinette will be High Priestess of the Sun and the Moon someday. If I backed off my place as High Priest sixty-three years ago, it was because I trusted that you could handle the matters of the coven alone. You are the strongest and most fierce woman that I have known and will ever know, but if Marinette isn't fitted for the role, I must intervene."
Marianne was red with fury.
"You backed off because warlocks became more and more scarce as they realized that church men held more power. And Marinette is still in training, she was just presented to the coven with the others, she is still the Maiden…"
"And there is no Mother in place. Marianne, you are already the Crone, you do not know how long you will last to the Coven."
Something was off. Marinette did know her duties as the heir, and she would never refuse them.
"What did you ask her to do?"
"To keep a friendship with Adrien Agreste. The boy is clearly infatuated with her."
Marianne couldn't believe her man, she loved him and respected him like the worthy opponent she fell in love with so many years ago, but she wasn't going to let him go wrong with Marinette in the same places that she had with their own daughter.
She walked as calmly as she could; servants made friends with other servants and talked. She opened Marinette's door and saw her on her desk furiously dragging the quill over a piece of paper.
"Put the quill down."
"I have to inform Alya that I have a companion for the event tonight."
Marianne sat down in her pale pink bed.
"What happened, child?"
The girl turned to face her. There was sorrow in her eyes.
"Grandfather wants me to whore myself out with Adrien Agreste."
"Marinette!"
She shook her head. She knew she wasn't being fair and that she should do all in her power to have the guy on the top of her hand, but it wasn't in her spirit to befriend someone with the mere intention of using them.
"I can hear your thoughts, girl."
Her eyes met her grandmother's. The old woman smiled.
"Figuratively speaking. Are you having a conflict between your sense of duty and your principles?"
She rubbed her cheek and sighed.
"I believe I do. I will do whatever I have to, but… what fault does he carry? It isn't fair to make the son pay for the father's crimes."
"You are right. But, is it fair to murder people for not following one's own beliefs?"
She jumped from her chair.
"Nana if you asked me to befriend and kill Gabriel Agreste with my own hands I would. But to do likewise with the son is unacceptable."
Marianne twisted her lips.
"Nobody is innocent, Marinette."
"It is not about innocence! He has been warning people that could be accused and he plans on going on. He is inadvertently helping us and I will never repay kindness with harm, as I will not reward harm with kindness."
Marianne got to her feet quicker than expected for a woman her age and smirked proudly.
"May those who love us, love us…" she began.
"And those who hate us," the girls continued, "may them perish with bleeding hearts."
Marianne kissed her forehead.
"I should make a talisman for the boy. When my husband gets onto something he can be unreasonable, and the Moon knows how strong his passion spells are."
Marinette gasped, and stepped away from absolute anger.
"Would he dare to put a spell on Adrien?"
"Very much."
The girl frowned, an absurd question popping in her mind realm.
"If we are capable of such thing, why don't we just put a spell on Gabriel Agreste? Not exactly a love one, but something to… calm him down, I guess."
The old woman laughed.
"Magic works with what is already there, dear. Love spells work when there is already some disposition, even a slight one."
"I see…"
Marianne left.